Snow Drift
by TheAssassinRenevaron
Summary: Jason is a typical ShinRa Infantryman. He strives for more, to be in SOLDIER. He wanted to do something other than patrol, he wanted action. Little did he know that he was going to get just that, plus more. Will he survive his promised adventure?
1. Chapter 1

I narrowed my eyes behind my helmet, trying to see who – or what – was coming our way. I wasn't afraid, we were armed but that didn't mean I couldn't be cautious…

My vision was red. Our coordinates showed in the right hand corner. The heat sensor part installed in our helmets showed my companions, a SOLDIER, a Turk and my fellow Infantryman along with the person walking towards us, in red, orange and yellow.

I raised my gun, it making a soft click as I turned off the safety mechanism.

But the SOLDIER held his hand out, motioning for me and the other Infantryman – who, too, had raised his gun – to wait.

I looked at the other Infantryman in confusion, why couldn't we attack? He shrugged, just as confused as I was.

I wanted to disobey the SOLDIER's orders, not only because I personally didn't think it was wise to just allow this person a chance to attack us, but also because he was SOLDIER.

SOLDIER and Infantryman had carried a grudge against one another for ages…or maybe it was just the Infantryman that held grudges against the other unit. We were jealous of them and the SOLDIER looked down on us, a little like, I noticed, the relationship between a senior and a freshman in high school.

Tseng apparently noticed that I wasn't going to lower my gun and shook his head in warning, a cold look in his eye.

I scowled and curved my lip into a snarl, turning away from Tseng and glaring at the black-haired First Class standing in front of me with his hands on his hips.

His breath was making small clouds in the air. Tseng looked cold in that lame suit of his but the SOLDIER and the two of us, Infantryman, were warm.

Another thing I was grateful for.

My uniform kept me warm in any type of weather, despite how thin it was.

I lowered my gun reluctantly, not completely though.

I couldn't afford to disobey my superiors.

I saw the person come up over the small hill his head down. He hadn't seen us yet.

I reached up and hit a button on my helmet, bar lines appeared in my vision, bouncing up and down. LOADING DATA PLEASE STAND BY. The computer installed inside my helmet went to work, taking pictures of the man and matching them with other files. In seconds I had a complete biography of this man.

_Smiths, Gerard Cody_

_Age: 31_

_Occupation: Merchant/Miner._

This was about all I needed to know. Everything else told me his history, and I wasn't interested in diving into this man's life and looking into things that I had no right to read.

He didn't look to be any potential threat-

"Hello there!" The SOLDIER cried out, interrupting my thought process.

-but you could never be sure...

I winced as the SOLDIER's loud voice echoed off the mountain.

Sure, just let the guy know we're here why don't you?

Gerard looked up, looking surprised to see such a large group, and hurried towards us, glancing nervously at the large sword on the SOLDIER's back and the guns my friend and I had pointed at his chest.

" It's alright. My companions here won't hurt you...that is, unless you wish to cause trouble. " Tseng reassured Gerard in a strange way.

He sounded like he was talking to a prisoner or something that refused to cooperate.

" Cloud, Jason lower your guns. " Zack, the SOLDIER, barked.

I rolled my eyes and lowered my gun, once more, being the faithful, loyal dog I am.

I growled deep in my throat. I'm starting to wish I was never assigned this mission, I wanted action!

" What can I do you for? " The man asked.

I snickered and Cloud looked over at me, trying to see what was so funny when he seemed to catch on to what I was laughing at and chuckled along. Tseng, Zack and Gerard looked at the two of us, puzzled.

Tseng and Zack shook their heads, warning us to stop, even though I could tell Zack was trying not to laugh as well. Cloud immediately quieted, trying to hide his laugh behind a cough, acting like he had something in his throat.

It took me a little longer to get back under control and I too, tried to hide my rudeness behind a desperate cough, glancing at Cloud who was flushing with embarrassment and looking everywhere but my eyes.

I smirked.

" Hey, Spike! What can I do you for? " I laughed.

Cloud flushed an even darker shade of red and bit his lip trying not to laugh. His cheeks puffed out slightly. My eyes bugged out, the effort of trying not to laugh way too difficult and Cloud's facial expression making it worse. I was in hysterics.

Zack scowled at me, the joke over and not funny anymore.

"Well, Tseng, it looks like we have a hyena on our hands…" He sighed, a small smile twitching at his lips as he watched Cloud and I struggle.

I stopped sharply and turned, a snarl on my face.

"Hyena my ass!" I yelled, rushing towards the SOLDIER. Cloud grabbed me by the arm and shook me gently, but enough for me to forget by sudden anger towards the SOLDIER First and look at him.

"Calm down! We're getting reported on how we behave on this mission, remember?" Cloud hissed to me, glancing nervously at Tseng and Zack who had now begun talking to the merchant again.

"I think it's stupid that the SOLDIER and Tseng get to lounge around while we're stuck doing all the dirty work! They haven't even given us anything _fun_ to do! We're stuck on guard duty like we were in Midgar! Captain promised us that going on missions would be interesting – much better than city life – where there is lots of action! But noooo, that's just too much to ask for isn't?"

"I know," Cloud sighed. "It_ is _unfair but we have to be careful! One bad mark from Zack or Tseng and we're done for, Jason. They'll kick us out of ShinRa faster than you can say Holy Chocobos!"

I smiled slightly. Trust Cloud to make me feel better with humor.

"You're right…I'm sorry. Thanks Cloud." I hung my head, feeling slightly guilty for my actions.

Cloud clapped his hand on my shoulder with a grin.

"Anytime, friend."

I smiled at his words. Did he really think me as his friend? I had never had many friends before…but maybe he was just saying that…surly he didn't mean it?

I glanced over at Zack and Tseng who were currently deep into conversation with the merchant.

Then I looked at Cloud. My comrade was frowning, deep in thought. He knelt down on one knee, staring at the ground.

I frowned, wondering what he was up too and knelt down next to him. Cloud traced the snow with his fingers.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

I couldn't see whatever it was Cloud was looking at.

Cloud doesn't look up but continued to scan the area around where we are kneeling.

"I don't know...but something...something's wrong...I can feel it."

My eyes narrowed in confusion, though the movement was hidden behind my helmet.

"What do you mean? Is it monsters? Villagers? Genesis?" I ask, hoping we found a lead as to where the rouge SOLDIER was hiding.

"Genesis? No. Not him. ... I'm not sure. It's not the villagers either...I think it's monsters...see how the tracks look? Though I've never seen anything like it before..."

"Should we ask Zack or Tseng?"

"Maybe, though it could be nothing." There was a long pause, broken next by Cloud. "Do you feel that?"

Cloud's head whipped up, searching for the source. He slowly stood up and I followed suit, dusting the snow off my pants and my shoulders.

I was super confused by now. Cloud was acting really strange...

"No, Cloud, I don't. What are you talking about?"

By now, snow was falling heavily down. I wanted to tell Cloud to forget about it and for us to go back to Zack and Tseng, despite how annoyed I was with them at the moment. I was cold and hungry and wanted to get to Modeoheim as soon as possible.

Cloud suddenly froze, staring.

"Don't. Move. A. Muscle." Cloud hissed to me.

I snorted. Since when did anyone ever listen when someone said that?

I did the exact opposite of what he said and, instincts taking over, raised my gun. I hadn't turned around yet, to see what he was talking about but saw another bigger, threat.

I paled. The thing - it looked like a snake, lion hybrid thing - was sitting on a ledge above us, staring down at me with hungry and curious eyes. I gulped.

"Hey, Clooooud?" I squeaked.

"Yeeeah?"

"Don't look behind you, k?"

"What?"

"You don't want to turn around." I told him.

"And neither do you."

"Why?"

"Because there is this huge monster-snake thingy that just fell from the sky and ... yeah." Cloud answered lamely.

"Really? What a coincidence."

"What is?"

"Why don't you turn around and see for yourself?"

"Alriiiight...but you don't want to see - holy shit!" Cloud cried once he had turned around, staring in shock at the monster that was much, _much_ larger than the one behind him that I only just now saw. It was much smaller and an orange-red color, were as the one that Cloud was now facing was black.

The two of turned so we were back to back, our guns out in front of us.

"Damnit...we're so screwed." I swallowed down my lunch.

" Where's Zack...and Tseng? " Cloud asked, searching for our comrades.

I looked around too, not seeing them anywhere.

" Oh sure, the first time we need them they disappear. " I said sourly.

Cloud and I hit the buttons on the side of our helmets in unison, sending out a distress signal that gave Tseng and Zack our coordinates.

We both raised our guns and clicked off the safety mechanism at the same time too.

" Well you said you wanted action, Jason. Here's your shot. "

I nodded.

" This will be a fight that ... you are going to lose! " I cried towards the monsters, releasing a torrent of bullets at the hideous creature in front of me. Cloud did the same.

The creatures somehow managed to evade all the bullets shot at them.

Soon I was out of ammo.

Cloud, shortly after.

We were goners, I knew it from the deep dark sensation in my heart. We had no other weapons or ammunition with us.

Zack and Tseng were our only hope.

But that small hope was highly unlikely.

It had already been at least fifteen to twenty minutes since Cloud and I sent out the distress signal, if they hadn't come by now then they probably wouldn't ever come.

Why would they risk their lives to help out two lowly Infantrymen that they didn't even know?

I hung my head.

" I'm sorry, Cloud, for getting you into this. "

" What? What do you mean? "

" I mean, when you pulled me away to calm me down, we got separated from the group. "

Cloud snorted.

" Don't worry about it, Jase. "

I was slightly shocked. Cloud wasn't angry at me for getting him killed?

" You mean...you're not mad that I'm going to get you killed? "

" Of course not, you dolt. Well wait...when you put it that way...it _does _sound kinda bad...but I'm not mad at _you. _You didn't know that this would happen."

" Seriously? "

Cloud sighed.

" Why don't we try surviving instead of apologizing over stuff we had no control over, okay? "

I nodded again.

" Sure. What you said before...about us being friends...did you mean it? Am I really your friend?"

Cloud turned his head to glance at me.

" Of course you're my friend! Why wouldn't you be? "

I shrugged, feeling embarrassed that I'd asked such a question.

" I don't know..." I mumbled.

I saw that both monsters were advancing towards us, snarling.

I gulped and held my gun out to my side; when the beast came towards me I'd swing the gun like a sword and hopefully knock it out or something. I won't die without a fight.

Cloud noticed and copied my actions.

" Good idea. " He murmured.

The larger beast lunged at me, but I quickly evaded it and swung the butt of my gun at its head.

I was satisfied to hear it slam into my intended destination, it cracked it upside the head and the best fumbled for a moment before growling and charging me again.

I knocked it in the head again, laughing as the beast yelped and lay stunned in the snow for a second.

"Hey, Cloud! At this rate I'll be SOLDIER in no time!" I yelled to him, adrenaline pumping through my veins.

I heard Cloud cry out from behind me and turned to see if he was in danger.

I didn't get the chance to even turn around fully when the monster I was fighting slammed into my side, knocking me off balance and sending me tumbling into the hard ground. The snow did little to cushion my fall.

I swore and jumped to my feet.

But I was knocked down once more by Cloud, who had been pushed backwards by the hybrid he was fighting.

The two of us landed in a heap. Cloud rolled off of me and into the snow. There was blood running down his arm and down the side of his head.

He was still conscious, but only just. I could see his pupils dilating back and forth – going between large and small.

I was a little better off than he was.

The only wound I seemed to have was a gash on my side from where the beast slammed into me, it had hit me hard enough to break skin. Only that and a few bruises were all that I could see.

Cloud had lost his gun when he had been pushed backwards so I was our only hope, I was the only one that could save our lives.

Both beasts seemed to know that I was the only potential threat at the moment so they pounced on me at the same time.

Their jaws clamped onto my gun and I fought to keep the beast's jaws from tearing into my flesh.

I was lying on my back, fear clenching in my gut, holding my gun sideways a few inches above my chest, and fighting the beasts for control.

My strength was worn thin, from the fight and all that walking we had done earlier. My arms were shaking. I was done for.

I felt slight relief when the pressure lessened when one of the beasts let go of my gun and went over to Cloud, who was attempting to get up and assist me.

The other monster pinned Cloud to the ground, growling at him. Cloud was frozen solid with fear and maybe the cold too…his eyes were wide disks of ice blue.

Then the worst possible thing happened, my gun snapped, not being able to take the pressure of the creature's jaws any longer.

The monster jumped back with a startled yelp. That gave me a few seconds to think of something to do. I couldn't just let this thing kill me!

I did the only thing I could think of. I rolled into a ball, bringing my knees up to my chest to protect my stomach and my chest and wrapped my arms around my head.

The beast was on me again, tearing at my uniform. I felt it's claws rip through the fabric and dig into my side.

I gasped and curled up tighter.

It kept biting. And tearing.

I couldn't help but scream at the agony, I was being eaten alive and I was defenseless.

I thrashed out at the beast with my feet but it didn't work, it only dodged. I couldn't move my arms because then it would leave my neck exposed, so punching it was out of the question too.

Oh, Cloud, I'm so, so sorry. I'm glad…that I got to know you. I'm glad that you're my friend.

I heard Cloud yelling.

I saw him through pain-filled eyes, hitting at the beast that had him pinned to the ground with his fists, his eyes alive with fury.

"Jason! No! Get off of him, you bast – "

He was cut off mid swear.

I didn't expect what had happened next and by the look on his face, neither did Cloud.

Zack jumped down from the ledge the bigger beast had been standing on with his sword in hand.

He landed on the beast's back that was attacking me and ran his sword through it.

Tseng took care of the one that was on Cloud.

He shot it clean through the heart.

Both animals collapsed on top of the two of us.

My vision was getting foggy and I could see blood – I wasn't sure if it were the beast's or mine – seeping into the snow beside me.

_Here's your adventure, Jason...happy? _

My eyes closed, the last thing I saw being Zack's concerned face peering down at me after pulling the beast off of me.

Before I slipped into unconsciousness, I heard Zack's words break through the black.

"Jason? Jason! I'm sorry Cloud…he's as good as dead…"

Dead…

Dead…

_Dead…_

The word echoed through my skull and, at the moment, it felt nice to hear. The pain was too much…but now I knew that I wouldn't have to feel it anymore.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, so first of all I'd like to thank each and everyone of you for reading this story! It makes me extremely happy to know so many people are reading this and liking it. I'd especially like to thank xXSaltzXx and NJU for reviewing, it really made me find the inspiration needed to continue writing this story even though I have no idea where I want to go with this story yet…any ideas would be very helpful. Thank you again! **

**And I'm really sorry for switching from first person to third person. I hope it doesn't confuse you as much as it did me, trying to put ' I ' instead of ' Jason ' all the time :P**

**EDIT: I've edited both the first chapter and this chapter, and the next chapter will be up VERY soon! I'm so sorry for the long delay! T.T Please forgive me!**

Voices pounded into Cloud's head like hammer blows. He groaned quietly and wanted nothing more for them to stop.

_Who was talking so loud? _

He needed to sleep and the loud voices didn't help his headache any.

He cracked his eyes open painfully, flinching at the sudden bright light of flame coming from the fireplace.

He could hear his heartbeat in his head, pounding behind his eyes. Pain was everywhere. He felt that he was the one who had gotten mauled by the monsters, not Jason.

_Wait! Jason! Was he all right?_

Dreading the answer, Cloud forced his eyes to focus and for himself to ignore the pain. His body protested, threatening to throw himself down into unconsciousness again, but he sat up quickly, searching around the room with wide eyes.

"Jason?" Cloud whispered franticly, searching for his friend with no success.

"You alright there, Cloud?" Zack's concerned voice was heard from the other room.

"Cloud? You're awake!" He heard Jason's excited voice next and then saw his friend's head appear from behind the door, being supported by Zack.

Cloud slowly sat up, wincing as the pain in his head worsened. He looked over at Jason and smiled painfully, glad that his friend looked okay and was standing, color returning to his face and his eyes bright.

"Are you alright, Jason?" Cloud asked as Jason and Zack came towards him.

Jason slowly nodded as he stepped away from Zack and sat in one of the chairs by the fire, wincing slightly.

"I've been better…but I'll live." He said eventually.

"You'd better. " Cloud grinned.

Jason chuckled lightly.

"What about you, Cloud? Are you all right?" Zack asked again, sitting in the chair next to Jason, his eyes filled with concern and regret.

Cloud looked over at him and nodded, smiling.

"Yeah…I'm okay. "

Zack gave him a small smile.

"That's good. "

The three of them sat in silence for a long while, everyone lost in their own thoughts.

The SOLDIER First-Class stood suddenly from his seat and did a quick squat, causing Cloud and Jason to look up and watch him with curious eyes.

"Right, well, I'll see ya' latter taters! I've gotta go find Tseng." Zack waved goodbye, a cheesy grin on his face, opened the door to their cabin and was swallowed by the whirling snow.

The silence after that was tense and made Cloud shift nervously, swallowing uncomfortably.

"So…" Jason mumbled, breaking the silence first, and pretending to be interested in a scab on his hand, not knowing what to say.

"…Zack was really worried about us, you know. I think Tseng was too. Zack tried to heal your wounds with materia; it worked…though not as much as we hoped. They didn't heal all the way, obviously, but it was enough to keep you alive. It took us a little while to get here, a couple hours I think…but you were still unconscious. You've been that way for a couple days."

"Oh…"

"I was unconscious through most of it too, it's been off and on. Apparently I hit my head pretty hard. I guess that explains this headache." He joked, trying to get Jason to laugh.

It worked a little, making him chuckle.

"We're in Modeoheim right?" Jason asked, looking up from his hand to stare at the fire.

Cloud nodded. "Zack told me this is where we'll find Genesis and Angeal. "

Jason gave a slight nod. "…When are we going to go look for them?"

"I don't know. Tseng told us to wait a couple days so we all can recover. "

Jason looked sadly at the bandages on his wrist and chest.

Cloud knew instantly that he was feeling guilty that he was postponing their mission.

"It may be longer than a couple days for all this to heal…"He said sadly.

"Nah…with Zack's materia you'll be better in no time!" Cloud grinned, trying to make him feel better.

Jason smiled.

"Yeah,"

Zack stepped outside, the wind hitting him like a wave and immediately numbing his cheeks.

"Geez…why does it have to be so cold over here?" He mumbled making his way through the thick snow and towards another small cabin nearby where he and Tseng were staying.

He knocked on the door to the cabin and waited for permission to enter before throwing the door open, the snow and wind following him in.

"Close the door, Zack." Tseng's voice came from a plush chair in front of the fireplace.

_How did he know it was me? _

_Oh well. Must be a Turk thing…_

Zack kicked the door shut and sauntered over to where Tseng was sitting and plopped down with a lazy sigh.

"How is Jason?" Tseng asked, not looking up but continuing to stare into the fire.

"He's awake. I'm not sure if he's doing any better though. He seemed to not be in much pain due to the meds you found for him. He was talking to Cloud and I, though, and he was sounding pretty good but…" Zack shrugged.

"Good…and how's Cloud?" The Turk raised his head slightly to look at his SOLDIER companion.

"Besides a major headache, I think he's doing alright." Zack sighed, sinking into the seat and closing his eyes, releasing in the warmth the fire brought.

"That's good…how long do you think it will take for the two of them to recover? We need to continue the mission as soon as possible."

Zack frowned.

_Well…that was pretty cruel…the mission before the safety of our men…_

_Maybe that's a Turk thing too. Weren't Turks supposed to act like heartless drones? _

_Just like SOLDIER I guess…it's like the expect us to be robots or something. _

"Cloud will probably be fine by tomorrow morning…Jason, though, I have no idea. If I use my Curaga on him again, he might feel well enough to walk around."

Tseng nodded, his face still blank.

"Do that tonight then, when you're both well rested."

"Sure thing."

It was silent except for the occasional pop from the fire.

Then:

"We'll find him, Zack." Tseng said quietly.

Zack jumped, wondering how Tseng could tell he was worried about Angeal.

"What?" He asked anyway, out of habit.

"We'll find Angeal…Genesis too, and we'll bring them back to ShinRa."

Zack nodded a little sadly and the two of them sat in a tense silence for a couple minutes again.

_Maybe he's not so heartless after all…maybe it's all for show._

"I'll go check on the boys." Zack sighed, referring to Cloud and Jason, rising from his seat and over to the door in a matter of seconds.

They both knew that he wasn't going to go check on Cloud and Jason. They both knew that the real reason was that he was leaving to be alone, to think, but Tseng didn't say anything, merely nodded.

"Be careful." Tseng called after him, just as Zack was closing the door.

Zack sighed and ran a hand through his thick hair.

"What a week…" He mumbled, setting off up towards the mountains again.

Cloud watched as Jason fell asleep in the chair, glad that he was getting rest.

He smiled sadly, stood from the bed he had been sleeping in to walk over to where Jason was sitting, and put his hand on Jason's forehead, making sure he didn't have a fever.

He yelped in surprise when he felt how hot Jason's head was and quickly pulled his hand away.

"Damn!" He swore and climbed to his feet.

He grabbed the bucket from next to the wall and made his way towards the door, preparing to get snow to melt since there was no running water in their cabin.

_I should probably go get Zack, he'll know what to do. _

He slipped out the door as quietly as he could, not wanting to disturb his sleeping friend.

He closed the door with his heel and walked over to a spot where there was fresh snow, where no one had walked yet, and knelt down, scooping the snow into the bucket.

Humming a soft tune to himself, he grabbed a handful but stopped mid-hum and mid-scoop when he heard a noise to his right.

He raised his head slowly, regretting that he left his gun in the room.

What if it's a monster? Or worse yet, Angeal or Genesis?

Then he noticed that it was Zack, clearly distracted, walking towards the mountains.

"Zack?" He whispered, a little confused. "Where are you off to? " He contemplated, watching the SOLDIER First make his way back up towards the mountains, his hands in his pockets.

Should I go see what he's up to or go take care of Jason? He wondered.

_Zack can take care of himself surely…Jason can't._

Shrugging, Cloud went back into the cabin, slipping off his boots and brushing the snow from his spiky hair.

"I'm back." He said, though it was unnecessary because Jason was fast asleep.

_Ahh…I'm talking to myself now…_

He walked over to the fireplace and set the bucket near the fireplace to let it melt.

His stomach growled.

"Ugh…" He groaned, knowing that there was nothing in their packs, because they had eaten the last of it that morning.

"It's just one bad thing after another isn't?" He muttered sourly.

He sat next to Jason and stared into the flames.

"This certainly has been more interesting than I thought." He mumbled.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm SO SORRY for taking so long to update! I've been working so hard on my newest Final Fantasy 7 story: The Prisoner Of Mind and have completley blown off the rest of my stories, which I know isn't a good thing. But I promise, I'll try to keep updating this one frequently and if I don't, I'm really sorry! I've got the ending planned out and everything already, I just don't have the time...anyway! Thanks to all of you who read and that you to the two people who reviewed, it really means a lot. Soooo, please enjoy the story and review :D**

* * *

Zack had no idea where he was walking and honestly he didn't care. He was worried, about Angeal, about Jason and about Cloud.

_Why does everyone rely on me for so much? They want me to make the decisions, to be strong. But _

_I just end up getting everyone hurt. If I had been there with Jason and Cloud, they wouldn't have got hurt._

_You can't blame yourself for that Zack,_ he tried to reassure himself, _you had no idea it was going to happen._

_Yes but I could have gotten there quicker!_

He found a rock, jutting out of the side of the mountain and wiped the snow off of it. He sat down with a sigh and put his head in his hands.

_What do I do Angeal? How can I convince you to return? _

* * *

"_Jason!"_

_I heard my name being called and, confused, I turned around to see who it could possibly be. _

_I frowned, not seeing whomever it was that had called my name. There were too many people in my way. They had all formed into a large group, all of them pushing and shoving, trying to make it down the hallway._

"_Where you at?" I called out, raising my voice to be heard over the hubbub._

"_Here!" Came the squeak. "Hey! Get – " I heard him grunt. "Out of my way! You're on my foot get off! Stop pulling my hair!" _

_I blinked in confusion. _

_What was going on? Hair pulling and toe stomping…I'm just glad I wasn't in the middle of it. _

_I smiled, seeing tufts of spiky, blonde hair in every direction. Cloud shoved his way past the rest of the people, sending a couple of them tumbling to the ground. _

_Breathing heavily, Cloud grinned at me and flipped a strand of loose hair in his eyes out of the way. It returned to its original spot, much to Cloud's irritation and my amusement. _

_Despite that, he didn't seem very worried that he made a few people fall to the floor, slamming against the walls on their way down. _

_I grinned back at Cloud and stepped into place beside him._

"_Where you off to?" Cloud asked me._

"_Eh…Field Training," I told him with a sigh, shrugging._

_Field Training was a class all Infantrymen had to take. Its name about summed it all up. We ran laps around the field most of the time, or did exercises. Only rarely did we get to do the fun stuff, like train with swords and guns._

_I liked the class when we trained with weapons, we all did, but, like I said, that was rare._

_Cloud nodded._

"_I have Patrol duty next. That's about all they give me now days… "He frowned._

"_Maybe that means you're getting better, you're becoming SOLDIER material. " I smiled._

"_What do you mean?" Cloud asked quizzically, looking up at me with a confused expression on his face._

"_They aren't making you do Field Training a lot anymore, so that might mean you're strong enough now not to take it." _

_Cloud seemed to glow with pride._

"_I doubt it." He denied, though I could tell he was still pleased by the thought._

_We walked in companionable silence for a few minutes, passing by other Infantryman wandering in the hallways or by SOLDIER Thirds, Scientists or Secretaries. _

_None of them greeted us, they didn't wave, nod their head. Nothing._

_I scowled._

_What were we, ghosts?_

_This was always how it was. I was always ignored. The only attention I ever got at home was bad attention. _

_This was the whole reason I came to ShinRa, so I could get stronger, become a SOLDIER. I just wanted to go home and show them all that I was better than them, that I was stronger._

_But…I was still a long way away from that dream. _

_I looked over at Cloud. I don't have to worry about those people; I've got Cloud to talk to._

_Cloud and I weren't best friends or anything yet, we had only just met a couple weeks ago. With our busy schedules, we hardly had any time to even talk. We ate lunch together sometimes, when we could but…_

_Did that make us friends? _

_Shrugging out of my thoughts, I tried to pay attention to what Cloud was saying._

" _There's this really crazy guy I met the other day, I think he said his name was Zack, but he's really hyper! It was insane! I've never met someone with so much energy before in my life! "_

_I laughed; I had met Zack too, the first day I got here to be exact. He and I had run into one another when we turned the corner going down the stairs. After making sure I was okay, Zack had started blabbering on and on at a very fast pace, fast enough where I could hardly understand a word he said, about how Sephiroth - I had gasped at that, astounded that it was even possible to be friends with Sephiroth - was threatening to demote him for 'annoying people that don't like to be annoyed and happen to play a very large role in determining whether or not you get into First Class.' _

_I walked with Cloud to my class, where we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways, me to the locker rooms and Cloud to the elevator to get to the main floor, and from there out the door. _

I groaned, feeling a raging headache coming on and blearily opened my eyes.

My vision was out of focus and very blurry, but I could make out Cloud sitting next to me, staring into the fire.

" Hey…" I choked, my throat feeling extremely dry. I tried to offer my friend, my only friend besides maybe Zack, a tired smile, but it came out more of a grimace than anything else.

Cloud jumped, startled that I was awake, then smiled back, clearly pleased that I was awake again.

"How long was I out? " I managed to ask, my voice raspy and hoarse.

_That's odd. My voice was just fine earlier…_

"A couple hours." Cloud replied, standing up and walking over to the small cupboards lined up along the wall and above the broken sink. He shuffled the contents around, mumbling something incoherent under his breath.

I saw him pull out a couple bowls, plates and some silverware. He placed those aside and shuffled around some more, standing on his tip-toes to reach the higher shelves before finding what he was looking for.

"Aha! Found you! "I heard Cloud exclaim quietly, staring at the cup in his hand, happy that he managed to find one.

He walked back over to me, dipped the cup in the bucket of water sitting in between the fire and where I was laying, and then handed it to me.

I drank down the warm liquid greedily, loving the feeling of it going down my parched throat.

Coughs racked my body as I drank, making me spit out my water and double over, clutching the area above my heart. Each time I coughed, pain flared up in my chest over and over again.

Cloud's eyes widened and he ran to kneel beside me.

"Jase! Are you all right? "He asked, his eyes full of fear, his eyebrows drawn together and lines of concern creasing his forehead.

"Fine." I managed to say between another cough.

My coughs quit just as suddenly as they had come, leaving me out of breath and in pain.

Cloud picked me up from the floor and carried me to my bed. He stood up to retrieve some more water and walked back over, kneeling beside my bed.

He slipped his hand behind my head, holding it up long enough to get me to take a few more hesitant sips from the cup he held to my lips, before laying my head on the pillow and dabbing at my forehead with a wet cloth.

"You're fever went up…" He mumbled.

I inwardly groaned. Great…a fever was just what I needed on top of all this.

He offered me the water again and I took it in my hands, sitting up.

I hesitantly took another sip, not sure if I would start coughing again, then I slowly drank the rest of it when none seemed to be forthcoming.

"Thanks." I sighed, handing the cup back to Cloud.

He smiled sadly, before placing the cup beside him on the bedside table we shared in case I needed it later.

"Zack went up into the mountains again, he looked like he had a lot on his mind. " Cloud told me, sitting down on the floor next to my bed and resting his head against the leg of the bedside table.

I passed him a pillow, knowing that he must be uncomfortable, and he took it with a smile and a thanks, placing it behind his head and closing his eyes.

I stayed silent for a few seconds, pondering what he just said.

"What about, do you think?"

"Well, I heard he's really good friends with Angeal…and probably Genesis too. This mission is probably very stressful and … painful for him. I wouldn't be surprised if he needed some time alone. "

"Probably. "I sighed. My eyes slowly shut and I fought sleep, not wanting to fall asleep again yet. I wanted to talk to Cloud some more and besides, I'm sure he was bored sitting around here watching me with nothing to do.

"You can go to sleep, Jason. I don't mind. Besides, it's good for you right now if you get lots of sleep. It'll help you heal faster. " Cloud smiled up at me, seeing how hard I was trying not to fall asleep and showing me he would be okay if I did.

"Will you go and find Zack? I'm worried about him…if he's up in the mountains…he could get lost or something. "I asked, struggling against the urge to sleep again, just long enough to talk to Cloud a little longer.

Cloud seemed to hesitate, but nodded.

"If you want me too, but I'm sure he'll be fine on his own. Besides, I can't leave you here all by yourself! What if –"

"I'll be fine," I tried to reassure him, forcing a grin on my face. "I'll be asleep in a couple …seconds anyway…" I yawned, blinking to refocus my vision on Cloud again, my sight having gone blurry again.

Cloud hesitated a few more seconds before nodding again.

"I'll go look for him. If you need anything though," He passed my radio to me. " Contact me, Zack or Tseng; I'll be there as quick as possible." He said, reaching for his helmet and placing it on his head.

He pointed to my own helmet, which sat beside me on the bedside table.

"Remember, just hit the button on the side that we hit earlier, the one that sends out the distress signal, if you need any help. It'll go to Zack's PHS, my radio, or Tseng's phone." He added unnecessarily.

I nodded tiredly, waving his worries away and watching him grab his gun from where it sat, leaning against the doorway.

I closed my eyes again as soon as I saw him walk out the door and fell asleep almost right when the door closed behind him.

…..

Cloud climbed the mountain steadily, feeling the pain in his wrist and side flare up again with every step he took.

He shivered uncontrollably the higher he got and clamped his jaw shut, trying to keep his teeth from chattering.

"G-g-g-good G-G-God. It's f-f-freezing! "Cloud said to himself, wondering why it was getting so cold all the sudden when he, Jason, Zack and Tseng had walked it a couple days earlier and he hadn't been cold at all. Could the temperature really drop that rapidly in a couple of days? Or am I getting a fever too?

He suspected the latter.

He reached up, took off his helmet, and then gently took off the bandage around his head.

Wincing and dreading what he might feel, he gingerly touched the skin around the wound he had received from the monster he had fought with Jason a couple days before.

He gasped, it was burning up and the pain was horrible.

He took his fingers away from the wound and fought to keep himself conscious.

"I … can't! Not now! I … have … to find…for Jason…" He swooned and quickly leaned against the side of the rock face to keep himself from falling over, his helmet clattering to the ground.

He leaned against the rock for a solid five minutes, panting. He was sweating now but he knew enough by now to know that it was not wise to take off any excess closing.

Cloud stared down at his hands, noticing that they were shaking uncontrollably.

Sighing, he wiped the sweat from his forehead then reached down for his helmet. He slipped it on with difficulty then shoved his still shaking hands in his pockets.

With weak knees, he continued onward, calling for Zack.

Now, knowing he may have a fever, he was scared and wanting to find Zack as fast as he could.

I'm so stupid coming up here! I should have just stayed with Jason!

"Zack!" He cried, almost sobbing.

"Cloud? Cloud! Where are you? "Zack's voice came from a long distance away, full or concern, worry, surprise and confusion.

_How could he hear –? Oh…that's right, he's in SOLDIER._ Cloud remembered after a bit, his brain taking a long time to respond.

He was overjoyed when he heard that familiar voice and stumbled towards where Zack's voice had rang out.

"Cloud? Stay where you are! I'll find you. It gets a little slippery up here…"

Cloud nodded weakly. Suddenly he longed to be back in Midgar now, where it was warm and they had the same boring routines every day. He'd had more than enough adventure too last a lifetime.

It took a couple minutes for Zack to make his way down to where Cloud was and when he did saw him, he ran the rest of the way down. He slid to a stop in front of the shaking boy and put an arm around him.

"What are you doing up here Cloud? Is something wrong?" He asked as the two of them started walking back down the hill, both glad to see the other. Zack for having an excuse to get away from his thoughts and Cloud that he was finally able to find the SOLDIER.

"No. I just wanted to make sure you were alright…" Cloud said tiredly.

Zack smiled.

"Thanks!" He smiled, giving Cloud a one armed hug, then frowned, noticing Cloud was shaking violently.

"Hey…Cloud, you okay man?"

Cloud groaned and clutched his head.

"I…I was fine e-earlier." He stammered past his chattering teeth. "I'm just cold, that's all."

Zack stopped, frowning in concern.

"You shouldn't have come up here…you aren't well enough yet to be doing too much."

"But I felt f-f-fine earlier." Cloud protested.

Zack sighed.

"Come here, get on my back. I'll carry you the rest of the way there. "

"No, Zack I'll be okay – "

"No refusal Spiky. " Zack grinned.

Cloud, knowing Zack wouldn't take no for an answer, allowed Zack to pull him up onto his back.

"Hang on tight, buddy. " Zack said softly, taking Cloud's limp arms and putting them around his neck so he could hold him better.

Cloud could only nod in response, feeling suddenly very tired.

He closed his eyes as they made their decent down to the town again, listening to Zack's heartbeat to calm himself down and lure him to sleep.

"You doing alright back there Cloud? " Zack asked, concerned when he felt the hold on his neck loosen considerably.

"'M okay Zack. " Cloud smiled before closing his eyes.

…

Zack sat on the rock he had cleaned off earlier, his chin resting on his closed fist.

He sighed.

"Zack. "

Zack jumped in start, that voice…it sounded an awful lot like Angeal…

"Angeal? " He called out desperately, searching for a sign of his former mentor and friend.

He didn't see anything but the swirling snow and trees higher up above him, when he looked up towards the sky, hoping to find his mentor there.

"Zack! " Came the voice again.

"Angeal! Where are you? "He cried again, looking up towards the sky to try and see if he could find Angeal up there.

There was still no sign of him.

"Zack! " Came a desperate sob, a little ways down the hillside.

_That wasn't Angeal at all! It was __**Cloud!**_

_Wait…Cloud? What was he doing up here?_

_Why did I think Cloud was Angeal? _

Shrugging off his thoughts, he ran foreword to where he heard Cloud call his name.

"Cloud? Cloud! Where are you? "Zack called out as he ran.

He received no answer.

"Cloud? Stay where you are! I'll find you! It's a little slippery up here…" He called out again, hoping Cloud didn't try to come up the hill after him.

He raced down the rest of the way and saw Cloud standing there, looking extremely relieved to see him.

Zack put his arms around his shoulders, smiling.

"What are you doing up here? " He asked, and then remembering the state Jason was in, gasped. "Is something wrong? "

Cloud shook his head.

"No, I just came to make sure you were all right…"

Zack couldn't help but feel pleased. Cloud had come all the way up here, being injured, just to make sure he was alright. But he also felt a little concerned too, it wasn't a good thing for Cloud to be up here when he was still sick.

The smile left Zack's face quickly when he felt Cloud's violent shaking underneath his arm.

"Hey…Cloud, are you alright man? " He asked.

Cloud shook his head and Zack felt like someone had wrapped a hand around his heart and was steadily crushing it.

This wasn't good, he thought, noticing the gleam of sweat on his young friend's forehead.


End file.
